


Childhood Friends

by hopelesscharger



Category: Le Fantôme de l'Opéra | Phantom of the Opera & Related Fandoms
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Fluff, One Shot, Trans Character, Trans Male Character, Trans Raoul de Chagny
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-16
Updated: 2018-01-16
Packaged: 2019-02-24 07:37:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 708
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13209030
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hopelesscharger/pseuds/hopelesscharger
Summary: Raoul de Chagny gets a crush on the girl he met when he was little when he runs into her again. However, he doesn't know how to bring it up.





	Childhood Friends

Raoul had seen her every day on his walk home. He always stopped by the small, locally owned grocery store on his way back home to pick up a pack of gum (as he chewed about half a pack a day). He'd become somewhat familiar with the owner, a lady everyone called Mama Valerius. However, she had a new employ, and Raoul couldn't get his mind off her, because he'd met her before.

She looks familiar, was his first thought, before he heard Mama Valerius call her from across the store- "Christine, you have a customer at the check out!" And that was when he realized where he remembered her bright, sparkling smile from. He'd met her when they were little. His family had taken a trip to the coast, where Christine's father was performing in a small place on the beach. He and Christine would run around, giggling and laughing and having fun, charming the club's patrons with their childish grins. During the days, while his older brother Philippe was off doing "boring adult stuff" with their parents, Raoul would join Christine and her father Emil for walks on the beach, where he told them fairy tales he heard growing up in Sweden and would help the children collect seashells.

Raoul, however, was unsure about how to approach Christine about the matter, because they'd known each other only during the part of Raoul's life before he and the rest of the world knew he was a guy. He felt a sort of anxiety about it. He wanted to approach Christine about their fond childhood memories, and every day he went into the store he felt butterflies and a crush building in his stomach. But he didn't know if she would be... okay, with that. By saying "You remember that kid you played with on the beach all those years ago? That's me!" He'd, effectively, be coming out to her.

He sat down on the couch with Cecilia Sorelli, his brother's girlfriend, and poured his heart out about all this while the two sat snuggled up, drinking hot cocoa. She paused after he finished, sipped her drink, and then responded. 

"Raoul," She said, "If you don't want to tell her all that yet, you don't have to. You can just approach her and say 'hi, I'm Raoul, it's nice to meet you.' Or, if you want, just wait until the time feels right."

Raoul slid down in his seat. "I don't think the time will ever be right. What if she thinks I'm weird, or gross?"

Cecilia smiled at him. "Don't scare yourself so much before you even try," she said. "I know it can be scary, but hyping it up in your head will only make things worse."

The next day Raoul stepped into the store and got in line at Christine's register, he was ready. When the person in front of him moved out of the way and he approached her, he could feel his hands sweating.

"Did you find everything you were looking for today?" She asked, looking at him with brown eyes that seemed full of warmth and kindness. 

He swallowed a lump in his throat. "Y-yeah. Uh, Christine Daae, right?"

She nodded and smiled. "You must come by here a lot to learn the employees' names." There weren't many regulars, but a few of them seemed to recall the workers' names.

"Uh, well, remember me from when we were little? That summer on the beach, with your dad and the seashells, and stuff..." Raoul trailed off, losing the strength in his voice.

A look of recollection crossed Christine's face, and then she smiled happily. "Yeah! Yeah, I remember. We got into tons of trouble, I'm surprised dad bailed us out as many times as he did." She paused. "You're..."

"Raoul," he cut in quickly. "Raoul de Chagny."

Christine smiled and jotted her phone number down on his receipt. "We've got to catch up, okay? Text me."

Raoul nodded he hurried out of the store. She was the coolest girl in the world, and she wanted to be his friend (again).

He was about a block from home before realizing in his excitement that he left the pack of gum at the check out.

 


End file.
